DATA BANKING AND THE ROLE OF NATURAL-HISTORY COLLECTIONS

A variety of strategies is being used to capture information from natu ral history specimens and to develop new research databases containing information on taxonomic groups. Consortia of institutions are being formed for the purpose of capturing data and making them available thr ough centralized or dispersed databases. Geographical information, whe n analyzed using Geographical Information Systems, provides informatio n useful in management and conservation of taxa and habitats. Images, when analyzed using such techniques as X-ray computed tomography and t hree-dimensional image processing, can reduce the need to examine actu al specimens. Image, sound, and text data are being combined into rese arch and instructional programs. Information on characteristics, distr ibutions, and relationships of taxa are being linked to other data sou rces, from both collections and non-collections databases. Efforts are underway to develop data standards and data-sharing protocols in orde r to facilitate sharing of these data among institutions and across di sciplines.